Stories for August 29th 2009

With much of the world still mired in recession, the IMF took action to bolster its members’ reserves through an allocation of SDRs, or Special Drawing Rights. The allocation, equivalent to 250 billion USD was made on August 28 and will be followed by an additional, albeit much smaller, allocation of 33 billion on September 9.

Economy Minister Amado Boudou said Argentina is a member of the International Monetary Fund and the government is trying to participate and establish a new relation but giving Argentina's own perspective to decide where the IMF must head to.

The commander of British forces in Afghanistan has said an increase in the number of helicopters would make the military effort more tactically effective. Brigadier Tim Radford said while there had been enough aircraft for the Operation Panther's Claw offensive, any commanding officer would like more.

The rate of contraction of the UK economy in the three months from April to June has been reduced by the Office for National Statistics (ONS). Gross domestic product (GDP) has been revised to a fall of 0.7% from 0.8% compared with the previous quarter.

HMS Gloucester is expected next Monday in the port of Valparaiso where she will remain until September 14 as part of a program to reaffirm the close professional links with the Chilean Navy. It will also be an opportunity for the crew to rest and recover after spending months in South Atlantic patrolling.

The much announced Union of South American Nations Friday presidential summit in Argentina finally issued a statement warning “foreign military forces” against threatening the sovereignty and integrity of any South American country and “in consequence regional peace and stability”.